Rockchip "PCIe Link Fail" / "Phy link never came up": NVMe Not Detected

Symptoms

• dmesg shows "PCIe Link Fail" (vendor kernel) or "Phy link never came up" (mainline)
• lspci is empty and there is no /dev/nvme0n1

Common causes

• M.2 slot unpowered: wrong vpcie3v3 regulator or enable GPIO
• Wrong PERST# reset GPIO or polarity
• PHY node disabled, or combo PHY left in SATA/USB mode
• Lane / bifurcation config does not match the board
• Signal integrity problems at Gen3
• SSD is M.2 SATA, not NVMe

How to fix it

1. Collect the evidence

   dmesg | grep -iE 'pcie|phy|nvme'
   lspci -nn

2. Check power and reset in the DTS

   &pcie3x4 {
       reset-gpios = <&gpio4 RK_PB6 GPIO_ACTIVE_HIGH>;  /* PERST#: match schematic */
       vpcie3v3-supply = <&vcc3v3_pcie30>;
       status = "okay";
   };

3. Enable the PHY and match lane mode

   Enable pcie30phy (or the combo PHY for PCIe 2.1 x1 ports) and make num-lanes/bifurcation match the routed lanes.

4. Force a lower link speed to test signal integrity

   &pcie3x4 {
       max-link-speed = <2>;
   };

Go deeper

• RK3588 PCIe Not Detecting NVMe: A Step-by-Step Debug Checklist

FAQ